One of the ancients sites in Orkney we visited was the Ring of Brogdar. According to folklore, a band of fearsome giants gathered in a field between the lochs of Stenness and Harry one night and began to dance to the sound of a fiddle. They forgot to watch for the sun rising and as the first rays crept over the horizon they instantly turned to stone. Today they are frozen in place, as the stones of the Ring of Brodgar.
Only a small fraction of the site has been excavated. Maybe in the future more will be uncovered and further understanding of the stones will be revealed.
We didn’t dance all night, so we did not turn to stone. It was a short visit to see the mysterious stones. It is amazing place to be, trying to imagine why and how these stones came to be placed here all those centuries ago. It is wonderful that they still stand and allow themselves to be admired.
I admit to being fascinated by standing stones. Probably something to do with my love of Outlander 🙂 These look amazing.
By: Eat, drink and be Kerry on August 27, 2025
at 12:58 am
It was wonderful to walk among the stones. Wouldn’t it be great to know why they were assembled?
By: Debra Kolkka on August 27, 2025
at 2:23 am
Wouldn’t that be a story!
By: Eat, drink and be Kerry on August 28, 2025
at 5:35 am
I love all thes folklore stories.
By: Camillus Davall on August 27, 2025
at 5:47 am
Me too! Orkney has lots of stories to tell.
By: Debra Kolkka on August 27, 2025
at 8:09 am
Isn’t that fascinating. Wouldn’t you love to be up there on a cold, grey, windy day and listen to the wind whipping through the stones: you might even hear an echo of a fiddle. I’m making my own goose bumps🫣
By: Jan Trounce on August 28, 2025
at 11:05 pm
It was nice to be there on a sunny day, but the atmosphere would be completely different on a cold, misty day…I must go back.
By: Debra Kolkka on August 29, 2025
at 12:38 pm
Wow I didn’t realise that only a small part had been excavated! I wonder what else they will find!
By: Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella on August 31, 2025
at 6:08 am